Forever Mine
by angelsinstead
Summary: Will Barnabas and Josette be able to combat the dark forces that threaten their love?
1. Always

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic is hugely inspired by Dark Shadows, a gothic television soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971 and was produced by Dan Curtis. Just so you know, I don't own ABC or Dark Shadows and I won't be receiving any payment whatsoever for this story.

~V~V~

Theirs would be a prearranged marriage. Even so, she had fallen in love with him the first moment she saw him. She had no other choice but to spend eternity with him as her father had said. She would be his.

The thought of their joining frightened her, because her mother had died when she was very young and hadn't explained what the marriage bed might entail. Still, when he kissed her, passion ignited and it overcame all her fears.

Tonight she had met him outside secretly in the garden so they could talk. If her Aunt Natalie found out, she'd be punished. It was worth the risk, because she wanted to see him.

"Did you like the new present I had sent to your room?" he asked her as he took her in his arms.

"Thank you for the jasmine perfume. It smells heavenly," she said as lay her head against his chest.

He inhaled the perfume as it mixed with the sweet scent which was distinctly Josette. "Anything for you," he said as he held her so close. "I can't wait until we are married."

"It won't be long, my darling," she whispered. "I'm so anxious to become your bride."

"Soon you'll be mine, forever and always..."

"No one will ever tear us apart," she said as she wrapped her arms around him tight.

~V~V~

The next day they worked on the wedding invitations together. As Josette sat at his side, he thought of how beautiful she looked. He couldn't believe that one day very soon, she'd be his completely.

"I brought you tea and cookies," said the servant Angelique as she brought them a snack upon a silver tray.

"Thank you, Angelique," said Barnabas. "This looks delicious."

He took a cookie from the tray and bit into it. He didn't know that Angelique had laced the tea with a powerful love potion. She giggled softly as she walked away.

Angelique waited in the hallway, hoping that the concoction she had added to the tea would cause mayhem. Josette took a sip of her tea and at just that same moment, Barnabas's uncle Jeremiah walked into the room. When Josette lay her gaze upon him, incredible lust suffocated her. She wanted Jeremiah with a force in which she could not comprehend. She glanced over at her husband-to-be, hoping he would never know of her scandalous and improper thoughts regarding his own uncle. Tonight when everyone was asleep in their beds, she would make her way across the house and confront Jeremiah.

"Hello there," Jeremiah said as he went to pour himself a small cup of the tea. He raised the cup to his lips and took a sip of the warm liquid. Staring into Josette's eyes, he thought he had caught a glimpse of his own destiny.

~V~V~

When Barnabas found his bride-to-be hovering outside Jeremiah's bedroom door in the middle of the night, he was horrified. "What are you doing, Josette?" he confronted her.

"I- I wasn't..." she stammered. "Barnabas, I must have been sleep-walking."

He looked at her suspiciously. Was the woman he loved sleeping with his own uncle? Had Josette and Jeremiah betrayed him?

"I don't think so," Barnabas said in a steely voice and walked her toward her bedroom. Once they stepped inside, he knew he'd have to do something drastic to keep the woman he loved from straying from him. Looking deeply into her eyes, he lowered his lips to hers in a passionate kiss.

Wrapping her arms around Barnabas, Josette melted into his embrace. Despite her strange attraction for his Uncle Jeremiah, it was he who had her heart.

Barnabas knew he couldn't wait another day to make Josette his. He swept her in his arms and insisted they were getting married that very night. "But Barnabas-," she protested.

"I won't lose you to Jeremiah or anyone else. I love you, Josette, and you are going to become my wife. Pack your things; we leave tonight," he insisted.

Once again, she tried to protest, but he kissed her until she quieted. He went to pack a few of his garments in a satchel, and then he was ready. When he returned to Josette's room, she was dressed in her wedding gown. She was such a beautiful sight that his heart skipped a beat.

"Josette, are you ready to become my bride?" he asked her with a handsome smile.

"I love you, Barnabas, and yes, tonight I am ready to become yours," she told him as she placed her hand into his.

"Let's go then," he said as they escaped together down the staircase and out of the house.

They took the carriage into Collinsport and that very night they eloped. After they were married, he had booked a room at a fancy hotel. "I want the honeymoon suite with the very best of accomidations," he told the hotel clerk. "Nothing but the best for my beautiful bride."

Josette smiled at him as she took his hand, and they went up to their room together. "Barnabas, it's so lovely," she said when she saw the huge four poster bed. He lifted her into his arms and carried her to it, laying her down upon it's surface.

She looked up into his eyes as her heart started to pound. Never before had she felt for anyone as she felt for Barnabas. Although she was nervous about their wedding night, she was also greatly excited. "You're mine now, Josette. No one is ever going to take you away from me," he stated.

"I'm yours forever," she agreed.

"Barnabas, should I put on my nightgown now?" she asked him quietly.

"I don't think you'll have a need for it, darling," he told her as he gently began to unbutton her gown. He undid each of the tiny buttons and parted the silken material of the bodice of her wedding gown. Josette was breathing harshly, making her breasts heave in her chemise.

"You're so beautiful," he whispered as he continued to remove her clothing. "I want you so very much, Josette. I ache for you."

"Please Barnabas," she spoke in a pleading voice. "I need to feel you against me..."

Barnabas's eyes darkened at her words. He stood only long enough to drop his garments to the floor. He then rejoined her on the bed. His lips met hers in a hot, erotic kiss. As they kissed, his hands roamed her delectable body. He took her breasts in his large hands and gently squeezed the lovely globes. He caressed them until her nipples were hardened and aching with desire. Then his mouth trailed to the sweet flesh of her neck. He sipped softly at her skin, then nibbled hungrily with his teeth.

"Barnabas please..." she cried out, thrusting her lower body against his in a great need of some relief. She didn't even know what it was she needed, but she was sure he could give it to her.

He kissed each of her breasts and nibbled softly upon her aroused nipples. "Are you ready to become one with me, Josette?" he asked in a voice overcome with passion.

"Yes please... make me yours forever," she whimpered.  



	2. Josette's Gift

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic is hugely inspired by Dark Shadows, a gothic television soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971 and was produced by Dan Curtis. Just so you know, I don't own ABC or Dark Shadows and I won't be receiving any payment whatsoever for this story.

~V~V~

Barnabas was a generous lover. He made sure that Josette knew the most exquisite pleasure before he joined their bodies as one. She gave him her most precious gift when he took her virginity. She had been surprised by the sharp pain that accompanied their joining. She had gasped as her nails sunk into his shoulders. He soothed her with his tender words until the pain had faded. Then he took her to the heights of ecstasy as he tenderly made love to her. Their bodies moved together gracefully, until they discovered the greatest pleasure two lovers had ever known.

"Barnabas, what we just shared, it was so beautiful," she whispered to him in the almost-darkness.

"That's because we love each other so much," he murmured as he tenderly kissed away her happy tears.

"I do love you," she said as she curled up in his arms.

"What happens now?" she quietly whispered.

"We'll enjoy the rest of our honeymoon. We'll make love many times... then we'll go home and enjoy the rest of our lives together," he told her.

"And nothing will ever keep us apart?"

"Nothing will ever keep you from me, Josette. You're mine forever," he whispered as he kissed her.

Xxxooo

A single candle lit the darkness as Barnabas held his new bride in his loving arms. "Go to sleep, Josette," he whispered to her tenderly. "We've had a long day... and we both need our rest."

Barnabas blew out the candle upon the bedside table and drew Josette into his tender embrace. "Good night, my love," she whispered to him. They snuggled together under the quilts as sleep eventually found them.

In the morning, golden sunlight poured into their hotel room. Josette awakened in the arms of the man who had her heart. "Hello, my darling," Barnabas whispered, his lips meeting hers in a tender kiss. "Did you sleep well last night?"

"Very well, thank you. But I am starved," she said as she stretched her arms languidly in the bed beside him.

It all seemed like a dream, being married to Barnabas and sharing their love with one another. It couldn't be real, could it? Had she finally found true happiness with this remarkable, handsome man?

"I am starved as well," Barnabas said huskily. "But not for food. I need you..."

He rolled over on top of her, kissing her neck. Josette shivered with the passion he evoked in her. "Breakfast can wait," she murmured as she threaded her fingers into his thick dark hair.

Xxxooo

It was hard to believe they had been married for seven days. Josette loved the passion and the intimacy between them. They were having breakfast at the Collinsport Inn when Barnabas announced that it was time they went home that day. "So soon, Barnabas?" Josette asked him with disappointment.

"I must return to the family business," he told her. "And our parents will be wondering what happened to us. We did not leave a note, nor did we let anyone know our plans to elope."

"I guess you are right," she said with sadness in her eyes. "But I am afraid."

"Afraid of what, my dear?" he asked as he took her hand in his.

"That what we have will change once we return home. I don't want to lose you, Barnabas."

"How could it change, Josette? I love you so much."

"Something isn't right back at Collinwood..." she spoke with fear lurking within her eyes.

"You mustn't worry, my darling. All will be well. We are married now, and nothing can separate us," he promised her.

Xxxooo

When Barnabas and Josette returned to Collinwood together, Angelique was overcome with jealousy. She had never seen two people more in love, and it made her sick. She vowed she would do whatever it took to tear their love apart. *Barnabas, you will be mine,* Angelique was thinking as she formed her scheming plans. She'd make Barnabas pay for rejecting her. Josette would suffer greatly for taking the man that Angelique had loved ever since their brief, passionate time together in Martineque.

"I can't believe you're married, Son," Naomi said as she hugged Barnabas so tightly. "Your father and I were worried about you... but when we realized Josette was missing, too, we figured you may have decided to elope."

"I hope I didn't worry you too much, Mother," Barnabas said as he kissed his mother's cheek.

"I can forgive you, Barnabas... after all, you've given me such a lovely daughter-in-law," Naomi said as she smiled at Barnabas's new wife. "Now that the two of you are married, we must complete the new house at once. Soon you'll have a house full of children of your own, and you will not want the rest of the family under foot."

Barnabas laughed softly and assured his mother that he loved her and always wanted her nearby. "We did however enjoy our quiet-time alone on our honeymoon," Barnabas stated. "How soon until the new house is finished?"

"A couple of weeks, I think," responded Naomi. "But don't worry, dear. Even when your father, Sarah, and I move into the new house, we shall leave Angelique behind to see to your needs."

*I'd love to see to his needs,*Angelique was thinking as she stood in the shadows. She'd wait a couple of days, then she'd make her move. Barnabas would be hers!

Xxxooo

Joshua, Naomi, Sarah, and Jeremiah Collins had moved into the new estate of Collinwood, leaving Josette and Barnabas to remain at the Old House with their servants Angelique and Ben. Barnabas spent a great deal of his time handling the family shipping business in Collinsport while Josette saw to the many tasks around the house. Josette especially liked tending the rose garden. With Barnabas away quite often on business, Josette became lonely.

One day as she walked into the garden to water the roses, she saw Barnabas in another woman's arms. Barnabas stood in front of the ceramic bench as Angelique was feverishly kissing him.

"What in the world is going on here?" Josette demanded, her voice sounding nearly hysterical.

Barnabas broke away from Angelique to see his beautiful wife staring at him in a state of shock. "Josette, this- this is not how it looks," he stammered.

"Then what IS it?" Josette cried out.

"I did not mean to kiss her. I don't know what overcame me. I- I-," he said as he moved his gaze onto Angelique. The lovely blond servant had a look of smug satisfaction upon her face. Obviously she had intended for Josette to catch him in her arms. Strangely, however, he did not remember kissing Angelique. He wasn't sure what had happened, but it made him sick. The last thing he wanted was to hurt Josette.

"Josette ~ beloved, please listen to me. It's you that I love! It's you that I want!" he implored her as he rushed to her side and tried to take her in his embrace.

A sound of hurt tore from Josette's lips as took a couple of steps backward to avoid Barnabas's touch. "Don't lie to me, Barnabas! What's going on with you and Angelique? I want to know EVERYTHING!" Josette insisted.

"We're so sorry you had to find out this way," Angelique finally spoke up in a voice that was sickening-sweet. "We never wanted you to know..."

"You never wanted me to know what?" Josette demanded of her husband as tears shown in her eyes. "WHAT? Barnabas, TELL me."

"I- I had an affair with Angelique in Martineque... before we were married," he said as he looked at her shamefully.

"I'm so sorry, Josette. Forgive me! She meant nothing to me..." he implored her.

*You're going to regret those words!* Angelique inwardly fumed as she looked at Barnabas with an expression vicious anger. *I'm going to make you sooo sorry."

"Ohhh my God!" Josette said in a sob. "I can't believe it! You've been lying to me ALL this time?"

"No, darling! No! I love you. Only you!" Barnabas told her. "And that's not a lie!"

He reached for her as he longed to kiss away all her tears, but for the first time ever, Josette pushed him away. "Stay away from me, Barnabas!" she cried out. She turned away swiftly, running back into the house. She rushed up the staircase to her bedroom and threw herself down on her bed. Her heart broke into a million pieces as she thought of Angelique and Barnabas making love. All this time, he hadn't told her. Josette Collins had been living a lie. 


	3. Lure

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic is hugely inspired by Dark Shadows, a gothic television soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971 and was produced by Dan Curtis. Just so you know, I don't own ABC or Dark Shadows and I won't be receiving any payment whatsoever for this story.

~V~V~

He had been lying on his bed, trying to get some sleep. His heart was hurting because his Josette was angry with him, and she had refused for the last two weeks to let him return to her bed. He was all alone, and his heart was hurting. He had promised Josette he'd end Angelique's employment as their servant, but still that had not been enough. His wife was hurting, and she felt as though he had lied to her all this time. He had never meant to hurt her by keeping the truth from her, but even so, Josette's heart was broken. He knew it would take time to mend those wounds.

As he lay in the darkness, he thought he heard a seductive voice calling out to him. "Angelique?" he said as he sat up in his bed.

"Barnabas! Come to me!" the voice cried out to him.

As if he had no will of his own, he stood up from his bed and reached for his clothing. He dressed quietly in the darkness, then hurried from his bedroom. He walked down the hall, then slipped quietly down the staircase. "Barnabas! Come to me at once!" the voice beckoned him.

The witch's voice lured Barnabas into the graveyard near Widow's Hill. As he stood there in the moonlight, he approached the rows of graves. He could hear her voice upon the wind, calling out to him from the mausoleum. "Anquelique, is that you?" he asked as he walked between the rows of graves.

"Barnabas!" that voice cried out to him insistently. Suddenly a flash of lightening lit up the sky as a clap of thunder made him pause. The sky was about to open up with a bitter rain. He suddenly wanted to be back home... with his sweet Josette. Why did his beloved not want him anymore?

As pain tore through his heart, he rushed toward the mausoleum. What he found within those stone walls struck terror into his heart. It was Angelique, wearing a nearly see-through white gown as she sat upon one of the stone caskets which would one day hold one of his parents when they died.

"What are you doing here?" Barnabas demanded, seeing she was running her finger through a crimson puddle which marred the stone.

"I am writing your name within my blood," she stated as she looked up at him in the dancing light of a dozen candles in which she had lit all around the room. "Barnabas, you made a grave mistake when you rejected me. Now you'll pay the consequences."

"Angelique, what kind of nonsense do you speak of? Rejected you?" he said with distaste. "You KNEW I always loved Josette. You KNEW what we had in Martineque was just a passing fling!"

"Do not speak to me that way, Barnabas!" Anqelique shouted angrily as she played with the knife she had used to cut into her wrist. Droplets of her blood fell upon the stone where she had written Barnabas's name. "I should have had your love... not Josette!"

"You will pay for what you've done! If you don't love me, then I won't allow you to love ANYONE!" she proclaimed.

"But I already love Josette!" Barnabas responded.

"You may love her, but will she be able to love you?"

"What do you mean? She already loves me!"

"She won't love the horrible monster you will become." With those words, Angelique began her witch's chant.

"Barnabas Collins, I curse you to never know love! I curse you to become a hideous creature that no one could love or desire! You will walk this earth aimlessly, longing for love, but you'll be unable to attain it, because you will be nothing more than a blood-thirsty beast!" Angelique cried out.

"No!" Barnabas screamed as the door suddenly crashed open and a vampire bat flew into the mausoleum. He was bitten on the neck by the flying beast. "Angelique!" he sobbed as he fell to his knees.

She only laughed wickedly as his blood soaked his shirt. "You got what you deserved, Barnabas. Now go and give your lovely Josette what SHE deserves!" 


	4. Making Love

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic is hugely inspired by Dark Shadows, a gothic television soap opera that originally aired weekdays on the ABC television network, from June 27, 1966 to April 2, 1971 and was produced by Dan Curtis. Just so you know, I don't own ABC or Dark Shadows and I won't be receiving any payment whatsoever for this story.

~V~V~

Barnabas had stumbled blindly out of the mausoleum as intense bloodlust overwhelmed him. He needed to feed. With hunger gnawing at his gut, he neared the Old House where his beautiful wife lay sleeping in her bed. He wanted to see her. He wanted to touch her. He wanted to make sweet love to her... but more than anything, he wanted to FEED from her.

Josette woke up when the French doors leading out to her balcony burst open. The long white drapes flowed in the breeze as she sat up on her bed. "Is someone there?" she called out groggily.

"Josette!" came a haunting voice.

"Barnabas?" she said in a gasp. She crawled out of bed, wearing nothing more than a form-fitting lace nightie.

She walked toward the doors as the chilling wind hardened her nipples. There on the balcony, she saw her husband. "What are you doing here, Barnabas?" she asked as she gazed at him in the moonlight.

"I've missed you, Josette... and I long to make love to you," he stated.

"No," she said as she turned away from him. "You have her. You have Angelique."

"I sent her away from here. She's no longer in our employment. I love only YOU, Josette. You're the only woman I want. I swear it," he implored her. "Please let me come inside. Please let me make sweet love to you."

"I do want you, Barnabas... but you hurt me. You lied to me. Was our love only a lie?" she asked as quiet tears rolled down her cheeks.

"No, Josette. I never lied to you when I told you how much I love you..." Barnabas told her. "I have never loved a woman as I love you... and I never will again. You are my everything..."

"I want to be with you, Barnabas... but I am afraid."

Barnabas reached out and caressed Josette's beautiful dark curls. "Do not fear me, my heart. I would never hurt you. Let me inside. Let me make love to you."

Staring into his hypnotic eyes, Josette could not refuse him any longer. She loved him with every beat of her heart and she wanted him with all of her soul. With a little cry, Josette went into Barnabas's embrace. "Hold me," she spoke in a whisper. "I need you."

"I need you, too, my darling," he responded as he crushed her against him. Now that he had Josette back in his arms, he felt that all was right in the world... but all was not right. That witch had changed him into a monster. His hunger for Josette's blood made him ravenous. Tenderly, he began kissing her neck. He would make love to her, then he would feed. He would make it so pleasurable that his love would not even notice- at least he prayed she would not notice.

As his fangs began to lengthen, Barnabas lifted Josette into his arms. "Make love to me now. Please," she spoke in a whisper.

"I love you, Josette," Barnabas said as he carried her inside.

Barnabas lay his beloved in the center of the bed. His heart was bursting with the need to make love to her, but his bloodlust was stronger than his desire to make love. It consumed him, making him hungry. He needed to feed. Why not do both at once? His love would never know, would she? He prayed she wouldn't as he took off his clothes and lowered himself onto the bed.

"Barnabas, I need you so much," Josette whispered as she wrapped her arms around him and threaded her fingers into his dark hair.

"Do you need me inside you?" he asked as he longed to sink his cock as well as his fangs deep inside her flesh.

"Ohhhhh yes... please make love to me. What are you waiting for?" she asked.

Barnabas began to remove Josette's white lace nightie. He took it from her body, tearing it in his haste to undress her. He tore it off her and cast it aside, along with her undergarment. "You're lovely," he said as he drank in her sweetness. He spread his hot kisses all over her, starting with her silky breasts and working his way down to her slender thighs. He parted her legs and buried his face in her sweet center.

His tongue teased her delicate flesh as though he could not get enough. She let out a soft little scream, feeling his teeth as well as his tongue. Never before had the passion been them been this intense. She was going to go up in flames. She forgot everything as he teased her little clit with his tongue. Suddenly she was cumming harder than she ever had before and in that sweet moment of ecstasy, Barnabas sank his fangs into the tender flesh of her inner thigh. The pleasure was unlike anything she had ever known. She thought she would die as the sweet pain carried her way.

Barnabas drank and drank from his love until he was sated. When he retracted his fangs, he realized she had fainted. Thinking he had hurt her, he gathered her in his arms and tried to rouse her. "Josette ~ beloved, are you okay?" he asked her.

"I'm just fine..." she said as she opened her eyes and smiled at him.

"What did you do to me?" she asked as she carressed his cheek.

"I gave you the greatest pleasure you've ever known," he answered. "I love you so much. You're everything to me... and I never want to hurt you."

"You won't hurt me again. That horrid witch Angelique is out of our lives forever."

Josette didn't know it, but Angelique truly was a witch in every since of the word, and because of Angelique, now her husband was a vampire. She was totally oblivious to the fact that Barnabas had just fed from her. The pleasure of her orgasm had been so intense, she wasn't aware that he had drank her blood. Looking at the tiny wounds on Josette's inner thigh, Barnabas tenderly soothed them with his touch. How long could he keep his secret from her that he had become a creature of the night? Would she still love him when she discovered the truth? Or would she cast him aside, calling him a monster?

"Make love to me now," Josette urged Barnabas. She wrapped her fingers around his immense erection, coaxing him to enter her.

Barnabas groaned as she stroked his throbbing flesh. He needed to become one with her. As their bodies were joined in the dance of love, their souls exploded into ecstasy.


	5. Peculiar

**Peculiar**

When Josette awakened in the morning, her husband was no where in sight. "Where are you, my darling?" she called out to the empty bedroom. She was cold and she was naked, so she covered up with the quilt.

She stretched in the bed as she thought of their lovemaking the night before. It had been so erotic. She felt more bonded to Barnabas now more than she ever had before. Surely nothing could separate them now. He was hers forever!

With a smile upon her lips, Josette crawled out of bed. She walked over to the full-length mirror, completely naked, and gazed at her reflection. Her cheeks were rosy, her hair tousled, and she had the look of a woman who had been thoroughly pleasured. But as she gazed at her curvaceous body, a frown came to her face. She had noticed a smear of blood upon her inner thigh and a tiny wound which looked like twin pin pricks.

How had this wound originated? She recalled Barnabas nibbling her inner thigh during their passion. Surely he hadn't...!

*No, no! That's just silly!* Josette thought. Barnabas could not have bitten her! There had to be some other explanation for those tiny wounds and she would ask him ... but where was he? Why had Barnabas left her after their sweet reunion and such a passionate night?

*Has he gone to her?!* Josette worried. With so many suspicions plaguing her, Josette bathed and slowly got dressed. She went downstairs to the formal dining room, where Ben had prepared her a nutritious breakfast of oatmeal and toast.

"Where is my husband?" Josette asked the servant after she had taken her place at the table.

"I do not know," Ben stated. "Would you like some tea, Miss Josette?"

"Thank you, Ben. I'd love a cup of tea," Josette replied as she managed to give Ben a nervous smile. She was so worried about Barnabas. Where could he have gone?

Ben poured Josette a cup of sweet jasmine tea, her favorite. She added cream and sipped from the delicate porcelain cup. "Ben, are you sure you haven't seen Barnabas?" Josette questioned.

"No, I'm sorry. I haven't seen him at all," Ben replied, but something in his demeanor told Josette he was lying. Barnabas was near- she could FEEL it. After her breakfast, she would find him and confront him with all of her suspicions.

Xxxooo

Josette had spent the better part of the day looking for her husband. She had walked to the new house and asked Noami if she had seen her son. "I haven't seen Barnabas in days, dear. Is anything wrong?" Naomi said as she held Josette's hand.

"There's nothing wrong," Josette stated. "He left so abruptly this morning... before telling me good bye. I just wondered if you'd seen him."

"No, I have not... but if he stops by, I will tell him that you are looking for him," Naomi promised. "Is everything okay at the Old House?"

Josette realized that Naomi was referring to what had happened with Angelique and the fact that the servant had been terminated as their maid. "Everything's fine, " Josette assured. "I just need to find my husband."

After giving Naomi a hug, Josette returned to the Old House were she resumed her search for his husband. Ben was acting peculiar, spending a great deal of time in the basement. Since his actions seemed suspicious, Josette waited till he had gone outside to chop the wood for the evening fire, then she headed down the stone staircase which lead to the cellar.

"Barnabas, are you down here?" she called out as she made her way through a maze of cobwebs.

The basement was damp and dark and smelled of mold and mildew. Crinkling her nose at it's unpleasant scent, Josette wondered why anyone would want to spend time in this cellar. "Barnabas?" Josette exclaimed as she searched the room and encountered shelves containing numerous wine bottles. The bottles were dusty and covered in cobwebs. There was nothing in this basement of any real interest. But if that were true, why did Josette feel her husband's presence so strongly? Barnabas was here! Josette could feel it. They had two hearts joined as one, so she was drawn to him. She needed to go to him. She had to find her husband and go to him at once.

"Barnabas, please... Are you here?" Josette spoke as she raised her small kerosene lamp high above the darkness.

That's when she noticed a small room which was hidden behind the rows of shelves which housed the wine bottles. It was a small room, containing only one item. A dark, dreary coffin.

Josette's heart started to pound when she saw the casket. What in the world? Why was there a coffin in their basement? What did this mean? Had someone... DIED?!

"You shouldn't be here, Miss Josette," she heard a voice speak behind her.

She turned quickly, seeing Ben standing in the doorway and she nearly dropped the lamp. "Ben, you scared me!" she gasped. "I came down here... looking for Barnabas... and I saw this coffin in this little room... and I-."

"You must leave now, Miss Josette... and don't come back," Ben urged.

"Why?"

"He wouldn't like you being here..."

"Who? Who wouldn't like it?"

"Barnabas. He would be very angry... if he knew you were snooping, here..."

"Why? What's going on? Something strange is going on... and I demand that you tell me at once," Josette insisted. "Tell me now, Ben!"

When the servant did not respond, Josette continued with her questions. "What's in that coffin?" she demanded. Ben did not answer. He just kept staring at the coffin with a fearful expression on his face. When he remained there, frozen in place, Josette became exasperated.

"Alright, you won't tell me... so I am going to find out for myself. I am going to open the lid of the coffin."

"Don't do it, Miss Josette. Please!" Ben begged.

"Dear God, what's going on here? What are you not telling me?!"

Before Ben had a chance to respond, Josette heard a strange scraping sound. It came from behind her, where the coffin lay upon it's metal stand. With a fearful heart, she turned to lay her gaze upon the coffin. Then to her shock and horror, the coffin began to open.

As Barnabas rose from his casket and sat up upon it's velvet interior, his wife slid to the floor in a dead faint. With an angry hiss, Barnabas exited the casket. His long black cloak swept across the weathered stone as he bent down and gathered Josette in the strength of his arms.

"Dammit, Ben, how could you let her come here?" he asked the servant accusingly.

"It wasn't my fault, Mr. Barnabas. I was outside, cutting the wood, and Miss Josette just wandered down here."

"She can't know I am a vampire, a creature of the night," Barnabas spoke as he gazed at his lovely wife. "She can't know. I could lose her.. and I cannot bear to lose her. I pray she does not know."

"Maybe she will think it was only a dream..."

Barnabas wasn't convinced. He feared the worst as he carried his wife upstairs and then up the second staircase until he reached the second floor. He lay Josette on the bed and stared down at her. Would she awaken hating him? Would she hate the vile monster he had become?

*I won't be able to bear it if she hates me,* he thought with an aching heart. He would have to do something drastic to see that his Josette never left him.


	6. Resistance

**Resistance**

When Josette woke up, the house was quiet. Night had fallen and the curtains were drawn. The only sound was the glowing embers which were crackling in the fireplace.

At first, Josette felt nothing but confusion. How had she gotten in her bed? What had happened? Suddenly then she began to remember. She remembered going into the basement, searching for Barnabas, and finding that dreadful coffin! She remembered her husband rising up from the inside of the casket and scaring her. She remembered falling onto the floor and losing consciousness.

"Ohhh my God!" Josette cried out as she sat up in horror. The memories had came back to her in a flash. She was so distraught that she nearly flew from her bed and out of the room. And she would have, too, if Barnabas wouldn't have stopped her.

"It's alright, darling. I'm here," he said as he took her in his arms.

He seemed to have come from out of no where as he sunk down on the edge of the bed, holding her. In her fear and apprehension, she pushed him away. "No, no, Barnabas. Let me go," she insisted as she turned away from him in horror. "I saw... I saw what you are..."

"What am I then?" he demanded as he took her face in his hands and forced her to look at him. His fingers were cool upon her cheeks... and if she hadn't known it before, she was certain of it then. Barnabas was no longer her husband.

"Last night... when we made love... you- you bit me..." she said in a whisper. "You took my blood..."

Her words hung in the air between them and Barnabas didn't bother to deny it. She knew. He saw it in her eyes; the way that she looked at him. The woman he loved looked at him as though he were a monster - a creature to be despised.

"Josette, I..." he began but the words were trapped in his throat. He wanted to tell her; to give her some explanation but there was none. Nothing he could say or do could explain away the demon he had become. Even now, as he looked at her, staring into her beautiful dark brown eyes, he wanted her; he hungered for another taste of her blood. He wanted to take it from her... and he wanted her to give it to him.

"It's true, isn't it? You're- you're a vampire?" she asked as sudden tremors moved through her body.

He could do nothing but nod. He put his head down, unable to look at her. He was so ashamed of the bloodthirsty beast he had become.

"Ohhh my God, Barnabas. You bit me... you took my blood... you made love to me, but you could not tell me?!" she cried out. "How could you do that to me? And who made you into ... into THIS?!"

"I think it was her..." he said sadly. "Angelique. I found her in the mausoleum... performing some kind of ritual. She wanted to get back at me... at both of us. I think it was she who changed me."

"She couldn't have you... so she wanted to make you suffer. She wanted to make it so I wouldn't want you either..." Josette concluded.

"Yes," Barnabas replied in a painful hiss. "She wanted you to hate me; to cast me aside. She wanted you to fear me; to be disgusted with the very sight of me."

He stared into her face as he pushed the words out - the words he dreaded, but he just had to know.

"So tell me, Josette, did she succeed? Did Angelique get her wish?" Barnabas questioned. "Tell me, my darling, are you repulsed by me?"

Josette didn't know how to respond. She kept shaking her head as though she were frozen in a state of shock.

"I- I don't know, Barnabas," she said softly. "I do love you, but I don't want to become a vampire. I- I don't want to drink anyone's blood."

"I understand that, my darling. I am not asking you to become a vampire, at least not now. I guess what I am asking is... would you be repulsed that _I_ am a vampire; that I crave human blood for my existence?"

"You drank from me last night, and it wasn't all that bad. In fact, it was... somewhat pleasurable," she said as she blushed.

A smile curved Barnabas's lips. "I gave you the sweetest of pleasures and that's how it would be with us. I would never hurt you."

"Would you force me to stay if I wanted to leave you?"

"Why? Is there somewhere you must go, Josette?" Barabas asked uneasily. He couldn't let her leave him. He loved her too much to ever let her go. He didn't want to use force, but if Josette attempted to leave, he was certain that the situation was bound to become ugly.

"Barnabas, I don't know about..._this_..." she said as she tried to scramble out from beneath his large frame as he half-leaned over her upon the bed. "I think it would be best if I left for a while... just so I can properly think-"

"There's nothing to think about, Josette," he said firmly. "You love me, and I love you. We are husband and wife. You won't be leaving."

"But, Barnabas, I can't -," she protested as she once again tried to twist out from beneath his body. He stayed her movements with a steady grip upon her wrist.

"I won't let you leave me, Josette. I have ways of making you stay," he said with a grim expression. "Don't force my hand on this. You will not like the result."

"Are you threatening me?"

"I will do whatever it takes to keep you here with me, in our bed. I have ways to restrain you... if it should become necessary."

"Well, then I will just escape... first chance I get!" she cried out.

"I wouldn't advise that, my love, because I promise, you'd live to regret it."

Something about his tone sent chills through her, all the way down to her toes. She had never been afraid of her husband before, but he wasn't just her husband anymore. He was 'more.'


End file.
